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Migraines are the suck!

ultraNoob

Yoshinoya Destroyer
Jan 20, 2007
4,504
1
Hills of Paradise
Background: Migraines run in the family. I have medication for migraine headaches, but my perscription is out and my doctor is out sick. I have flexareal (sp) for regular migraines and imitrex for the cluster migraines. I'm outta both.

Who gets'm and how do you get rid of them?
 

binary visions

The voice of reason
Jun 13, 2002
22,092
1,132
NC
Imitrex is the only thing that gets rid of them for me. I haven't had one in a while, actually, but I used to get them pretty regularly.

Only other thing that would work is if I caught it right when I first started to feel like I was getting one, if I ate something and could sit down & close my eyes for a while, it would sometimes go away.
 

brungeman

I give a shirt
Jan 17, 2006
5,170
0
da Burgh
yep... sleep and quiet... and what DRB said!

careful with the imitrex! caused problems for my mother and her heart, and similar occurances happened with a few others I know!
 
Mine usually stem from muscle tension in my neck. I'll start with 4 ibuprofen, get a medium size water bottle (Nalgene; rolled towel or whatever fits the desired neck curvature) then laying on the floor and then put an ice pack between me and the water bottle. Rest for 15 minutes. If that doesn't give me immediate relief, it's straight to the Imitrex. With medication available now days that actually works, there's really no reason to suffer to much from these anymore.
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
I take a bunch of advil and a 4 oz shot of Jim Beam. The other thing that seems to work is standing in the shower with the water as hot as I can stand, letting the water blast the back of my head and neck.
 

dhmike

Turbo Monkey
Dec 20, 2006
4,304
43
Boise Idaho
Background: Migraines run in the family. I have medication for migraine headaches, but my perscription is out and my doctor is out sick. I have flexareal (sp) for regular migraines and imitrex for the cluster migraines. I'm outta both.

Who gets'm and how do you get rid of them?
man up ultranoob and walk it off !
 

Upgr8r

High Priest or maybe Jedi Master
May 2, 2006
941
0
Ventura, CA
Man I feel for you as I've had them most of my life. In a pinch, Advil Liquigels have taken the edge off. Or take Tylenol and Aleve at the same time. The drug interaction kicks them into high gear. Not good for the liver but on an occasional basis, its done the trick for me
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
Who gets'm and how do you get rid of them?
I take Imitrex as well, but it makes me feel worse for two hours before I start to feel better, so I do the following first:

-- four ibuprofen
-- ice pack on my neck and head for 15-20 minutes

If that doesn't work after 30-45 minutes, I'll:
-- add two more ibuprofen
-- take 1-2 dramamine (yeah, motion sickness pills, but it helps big time)
-- ice pack again

If that doesn't work, then I add on the Imitrex.


The question is, why do you get migraines? Spine issue, diet, stress? If you lived here, I could recommend a brilliant Chiropractor who's great at relieving and preventing migraines.
 

Prettym1k3

Turbo Monkey
Aug 21, 2006
2,864
0
In your pants
My old roommate just used to smoke a lot of pot... and by "a lot", I mean she dated a drug dealer for almost a year.

She also was prescribed Topamax (sp?) which she quickly dubbed "Dope-a-max" because it knocked her out solid for like 4-5 hours after one dose.
 

neanderthal

Monkey
Mar 1, 2005
215
0
Pittsburgh
My wife uses Imitrex for her migraines. Her pcp recommended that she not use Imitrex for an extended period of time. According to her doctor, Imitrex is pretty good for relieving migraine headaches but it has a nasty habit of severe rebound headaches, ie, your next migraine may be more severe than your previous. She hasn't had any problems though using Imitrex.
 

Upgr8r

High Priest or maybe Jedi Master
May 2, 2006
941
0
Ventura, CA
My usual trigger is stress and lack of sleep although sometimes certain foods will set one off. None of the newer drugs like Imitrix work for me so, so my usual prescriptions are for Fiornal for moderate migraines and Fional w/ Codeine for severe ones.

Before a migraine, my sense of smell gets really acute. Does anyone else have this? I've only met a few people with the smell aura
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
According to her doctor, Imitrex is pretty good for relieving migraine headaches but it has a nasty habit of severe rebound headaches, ie, your next migraine may be more severe than your previous. She hasn't had any problems though using Imitrex.
Yeah, that's why I take it as a last resort also.

Before a migraine, my sense of smell gets really acute. Does anyone else have this? I've only met a few people with the smell aura
Mine doesn't get more sensitive, it gets wierd... I smell what I see. I forgot what the condition is called, but apparently, it's a real thing where someone will see "brown", but instead of processing it as a color, they smell "cinammon" or something. That's what happens to me anyway.
 

Upgr8r

High Priest or maybe Jedi Master
May 2, 2006
941
0
Ventura, CA
Mine doesn't get more sensitive, it gets wierd... I smell what I see. I forgot what the condition is called, but apparently, it's a real thing where someone will see "brown", but instead of processing it as a color, they smell "cinammon" or something. That's what happens to me anyway.
weird man. You sure it isn't the acid:brow:

I don't have that. Mine just gets really acute so someone wearing just little perfume smells like a $2 french whore. Or cooking smells will usually make me retch.
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
Yeah, that's it, but interesting that the wiki has no mention of smells?

googling "Synesthesia smell" brings up some stuff, so I guess it's more rare?

Interesting stuff...
"'Until one day,' I said to my father, 'I realized that to make an R all I had to do was first write a P and draw a line down from its loop. And I was so surprised that I could turn a yellow letter into an orange letter just by adding a line'"

– Patricia Lynne Duffy, recalling an earlier experience, from her book Blue Cats and Chartreuse Kittens
 

ultraNoob

Yoshinoya Destroyer
Jan 20, 2007
4,504
1
Hills of Paradise
weird man. You sure it isn't the acid:brow:

I don't have that. Mine just gets really acute so someone wearing just little perfume smells like a $2 french whore. Or cooking smells will usually make me retch.
That's what set me off. Some lady in church yesterday had the worst friggn perfume. It was standing room only so I couldn't really escape anywhere. 30min of that torture and my migraine was fully on. Migraines are apparently hereditary, all the men on my dads side of the family get them.

My main triggers are smell and stress. I hate imitrex cuz my skin crawls 20 min after taking it, but it works. I've heard about Topamax. I'll see if I can get a sample or something till my doc gets back. In the mean time, I'll try the dramamine thing. But, dang, 4 advils and 4oz of Jim Beam?! My liver is angry at me just for considering it!
 

ultraNoob

Yoshinoya Destroyer
Jan 20, 2007
4,504
1
Hills of Paradise
man up ultranoob and walk it off !
haha, I would, if I could walk without throwing up :drool:

my migraines usually start with a tingling on the crown of my head shorty followed by an intense nausea and spotty vision "fireworks", then I know i'm screwed and have to find someplace darker/less smellier/quieter. If I catch it early enough, I can beat it with a 30min nap and a few advil, if I'm too slow to react or can't react immediatley, I'm down for hours/days.
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
But, dang, 4 advils and 4oz of Jim Beam?! My liver is angry at me just for considering it!
Yeah, don't do that.

4 tylenol (acetametaphin) and 4oz of alcohol might send your liver into failure. I had a friend who was a drinker, and did that daily for like a week. If someone hadn't died in a car accident and donated his liver, he'd be dead.
 

Upgr8r

High Priest or maybe Jedi Master
May 2, 2006
941
0
Ventura, CA
haha, I would, if I could walk without throwing up :drool:

my migraines usually start with a tingling on the crown of my head shorty followed by an intense nausea and spotty vision "fireworks", then I know i'm screwed and have to find someplace darker/less smellier/quieter. If I catch it early enough, I can beat it with a 30min nap and a few advil, if I'm too slow to react or can't react immediatley, I'm down for hours/days.
:stupid: Thats pretty much my scenario although sometimes I wake up with a migraine, then I'm really screwed
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
Yeah, that's it, but interesting that the wiki has no mention of smells?

googling "Synesthesia smell" brings up some stuff, so I guess it's more rare?

Interesting stuff...
Yeah, it's facinating. For me certain numbers are personified and some numbers are better than others. It made learning math in elementary school a real challenge. Imagine learning to add 3+4 and have it equal 8 because 8 is better than 7. It must have driven my teachers nuts. Basic math made me really mad because to get the right answer I some times had to pick unfavorable, disreputable numbers. I don't notice it that much anymore, I guess I out grew it. Then again, I don't sit around doing x's tables much these days either.

A really good friend of mine has the letters, numbers -> colors thing. He gets overwhelmed trying to read books because there are just too many colors on the page.
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
But, dang, 4 advils and 4oz of Jim Beam?! My liver is angry at me just for considering it!
Yeah, fortunately, it doesn't happen very often. It's especially bad when I get the nausea. That makes it real hard to choke down the liquor. It usually makes me numb enough so that I can bear the time it takes for the advil to kick in or numb enough to fall asleep. Either way, it works.
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
A really good friend of mine has the letters, numbers -> colors thing. He gets overwhelmed trying to read books because there are just too many colors on the page.
random thought...

I know he sees colors cuz of the content and not cuz his of his eyes, but what about colored sunglasses or those 3-d red-blue glasses you get in movie theaters? Maybe it would trick his brain?
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
Yeah, fortunately, it doesn't happen very often. It's especially bad when I get the nausea. That makes it real hard to choke down the liquor. It usually makes me numb enough so that I can bear the time it takes for the advil to kick in or numb enough to fall asleep. Either way, it works.
That is so dangerous and only emphasizes why weed should be legal. I only smoke these days when I feel a migraine coming on. And then, only sometimes cuz it's not reliable, but it's better than so much alcohol.
 

ultraNoob

Yoshinoya Destroyer
Jan 20, 2007
4,504
1
Hills of Paradise
Dramamine is helping. Nausea and dizzyness have cut down at least 50%. 3more hours then I get to go home! Gonna pass by my general practicioner, says he has a sample of topamax he can give me. He made sure to tell me not to tell my neurologist that he hooked me up with a sample (they're brothers and he doesn't wanna piss off his older bro)
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
That is so dangerous and only emphasizes why weed should be legal. I only smoke these days when I feel a migraine coming on. And then, only sometimes cuz it's not reliable, but it's better than so much alcohol.
Why is drinking a couple or four oz of liquor and some advil dangerous? (that's like 2-3 good beers) It's not like I'm taking a bunch of sleeping pills and hammering Jager shots.

Cavat: I only use this method when at home and not operating any heavy machinery.


EDIT: I just googled alcohol and migraines, seems as though alcohol will trigger migraines in many people, so maybe it isn't such a good idea to follow my advice.
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
Why is drinking a couple or four oz of liquor and some advil dangerous? (that's like 2-3 good beers) It's not like I'm taking a bunch of sleeping pills and hammering Jager shots.

Cavat: I only use this method when at home and not operating any heavy machinery.
I'm sorry if I sounded judgemental, I'm not, cuz I've done that too.

It's dangerous cuz mixing:
alcohol + ibuprofen can tear up your stomach.
alcohol + acetemetaphin can tear up your liver.

I'm not sure what alcohol + asprin or aleve will do, but I bet it ain't good.

And again, I've done these things, so not trying to insult. The worst was in a 24 hour period:
20 ibuprofen
couple shots of whiskey
2 percocets
2 imitrex
bowl of weed
4 aleve

next step was to go all movie "Pi" and put a drill to my head to alleviate the pain... Trepanation